Allen Hoskins
Biography Character: Farina Hoskins Birthday: August 9, 1920 Place of Birth: Boston, Masachusetts Date of Death: July 26, 1980 Place of Death: Oakland, California First Short: Fire Fighters Last Short: Fly My Kite Number of Shorts: 105 (more than any other Little Rascal) History: Allen Clayton Hoskins Jr. was one of the two most popular Rascals in the Silent Films along with Joseph Cobb. He was discovered at two years of age by Ernie Morrison and his father in the Watts District of Los Angeles, the two of them becoming partners in the Our Gang series. Hoskins was nick-named after a breakfast cereal. Hal Roach called him "one of the finest natural actors" in the series. Allen went on to work in all but two of the silent films and two seasons of talkies, lasting long after Ernie left the series, but before long, even Allen started showing signs of no longer being a child star. At the time, he was earning $350 a week, much more than the traditional $40 a week for the rest of his co-stars. He had been the main star for much longer than any other character in Our Gang and his departure left a vacuum that would not be filled until Spanky came along to fill the void. His last role as a Rascal would be in Fly My Kite, but reappeared out of the series in The Stolen Jools, a promotional stunt featuring brief appearances by over fifty stars including the current Our Gang members. His sister, Jannie Hoskins, appeared in more than twenty shorts with him. In 1932, Allen emceed a Voice of Hollywood short in 1932 and co-starred in "You Said a Mouthful" with Joe E. Brown and "The Mayor of Hell" with James Cagney. He briefly returned to Our Gang for a cameo Fish Hooky in 1933. Working in Vaudeville, Allen showed up for several Our Gang reunions, but it was not until he joined the Army that he finally grew his mustache. After the war, he tried to get a part in the Amos And Andy series and later majored in drama at Los Angeles City College. Feeling he had to eat regularly, Allen became a licensed psychological technician in San Francisco. He dropped out of sight for a semblance of a normal life, but in 1975, he became an inductee into The Black Filmmaker's Hall of Fame. In 1980, shortly before he was to appear in an Our Gang reunion in Hollywood, he quietly passed away from cancer. He was survived by his two children and his sister, Jannie Hoskins, who had starred in Our Gang with him and had since become a postal worker in Northern California. She passed away in 1996. List of Shorts *Fire Fighters *Young Sherlocks *One Terrible Day *Saturday Morning *The Big Show *The Cobbler *The Champeen! *Boys To Board *A Pleasant Journey *Giants Vs. Yanks *Back Stage *Dogs Of War! *Lodge Night *Stage Fright *July Days *Sunday Calm *No Noise *Derby Day *Fast Company *Tire Trouble *Big Business *The Buccaneers *Seein' Things *Commencement Day *It's A Bear *Cradle Robbers *Jubilo Jr. *High Society *The Sun Down Limited *Every Man For Himself *The Mysterious Mystery! *The Big Town *Circus Fever *Dog Days *The Love Bug *Ask Grandma *Shootin' Injuns *Official Officers *Mary, Queen Of Tots *Boys Will Be Joys *Better Movies *Your Own Back Yard *One Wild Ride *Good Cheer *Buried Treasure *Monkey Business *Baby Clothes *Uncle Tom's Uncle *Thundering Fleas *Shivering Spooks *The Fourth Alarm! *War Feathers *Telling Whoppers *Seeing The World *Bring Home The Turkey *Ten Years Old *Love My Dog *Tired Business Men *Baby Brother *Chicken Feed *Olympic Games *The Glorious Fourth *Playin' Hookey *The Smile Wins *Yale Vs. Harvard *The Old Wallop *Heebee Jeebees *Dog Heaven *Spook-Spoofing *Rainy Days *Edison, Marconi & Co. *Barnum & Ringling, Inc. *Fair And Muddy *Crazy House *Growing Pains *Old Gray Hoss *School Begins *The Spanking Age *Election Day *Noisy Noises *The Holy Terror *Wiggle Your Ears *Fast Freight *Little Mother *Cat, Dog & Co. *Saturday's Lesson *Small Talk *Railroadin' *Boxing Gloves *Lazy Days *Bouncing Babies *Moan & Groan, Inc *Shivering Shakespeare *The First Seven Years *When The Wind Blows *Bear Shooters *A Tough Winter *Pups Is Pups *Teacher's Pet *School's Out *Helping Grandma *Love Business *Little Daddy *Bargain Day *Fly My Kite *Fish Hooky Other Projects * The Stolen Jools (1931) - with Matthew Beard, Norman Chaney, Dorothy DeBorba, Oliver Hardy, Robert Hutchins, Mary Ann Jackson, Stan Laurel, and Shirley Jean Rickert * You Said A Mouthful (1932) * The Life of Jimmy Dolan (1933) * The Mayor of Hell (1933) - with Andrew Shuford * Reckless (1935) * The Gorgeous Hussy (1936) (uncredited) * Winterset (1936) (uncredited) * After The Thin Man (uncredited) (1936) ---- Category: Our Gang Regular Category: Male Rascals Category: Deceased Rascals Category: Over Twenty Shorts Category: Over Fifteen Shorts Category: Over Ten Shorts Category: Over Five Shorts